昔 — “long ago / olden times” in Japanese

Grade 3せき, しゃく, むかし

Radical ⽇ · radical 72 The building block this kanji is filed under

“long ago / olden times” in Japanese is 昔, read seki, shaku, mukashi (せき, しゃく, むかし). It is a Grade 3 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 3 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 昔話 (old tale).

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What does 昔 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	昔
Meaning	long ago / olden times
Readings	せき, しゃく, むかし
Grade	Grade 3 (Medium)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	昔話 (old tale)

How to read 昔

昔 is read seki (せき) or shaku (しゃく) or mukashi (むかし) depending on the word.

Words with 昔

昔話

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Kanji read the same way as 昔

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Updated: 2026-08-28